There were 18,402 visitors from Russia in 2024, an increase of 3 pc from the figures of 2023
In a move that is likely to significantly enhance the number of arrivals from Russia to Seychelles, the Russian national carrier Aeroflot has decided to resume flights from Moscow to Seychelles from October.
The Russian flag carrier, that ceased its flights to the archipelago in the Indian Ocean, will operate three flights a week.
According to a press statement by Seychelles Tourism, the resumption of flights by Aeroflot was discussed in a meeting between Antony Derjacques, Minister for Transport of Seychelles, and a delegation of the airline led by Artyom Kozhin, Ambassador of Russia to Seychelles.
The statement adds that during the meeting, Derjacques highlighted the important contributions made by Aeroflot in the economic recovery of Seychelles from the Covid-19 pandemic.
He said that since it resumed scheduled flights to Seychelles in 2021, Aeroflot has was consistent in its performance driving up tourist arrivals from Russia from under 15,000 in 2019 to more than 38,000 in 2023.
Antony Derjacques
“As a result, Russia now stands in the top five of our tourist arrivals week on week. We are very pleased with this achievement. It is in this spirit and in recognition of its contribution to our socio-economic development that we are rallying the support of all stakeholders to ensure the smooth resumption of Aeroflot in Winter 2024,” says Derjacques.
In the meeting, Kozhin emphasised the achievements made by Aeroflot since it resumed flights to Seychelles. He said through this operation, the tourism profile of Seychelles has seen a significant hike in Russia, spurring demand for travel to the islands, and reiterated the remarkable numbers of tourist arrivals from Russia in 2023, which is the highest on record in over a decade.
The representatives from Aeroflot briefed the minister on some operational challenges they were facing. Derjacques reassured the Russian delegation that through a multi-stakeholder approach, the government would find meaningful solutions to address any hurdles that they face.
He called for a cohesive and collaborative approach locally among key stakeholders to ensure the airline can resume the flights as planned later this year.
“We need to recognise the domino effect of Aeroflot’s operation to Seychelles. Everyone in the country benefits either directly or indirectly. Henceforth, it is important that we work towards ensuring that we can achieve year-round service from the airline by creating the right conditions to facilitate their operation,” he added.
According to the latest visitor arrivals figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics, there were 18,402 visitors from Russia in 2024, an increase of 3 pc from the figures of 2023. Russia is the third largest market for visitor arrivals. Germany still leads with 29,149, a 40 pc increase from 2023, while France is second with 20,050, a decrease of 4 pc from last year.
Seychelles saw an increase of 3 pc in the total of visitors at 160,359 arrivals from January to June 12 in 2024 compared to 155,079 last year. However, for week 23 there has been a decrease of 15 pc compared to 2023. Only 4,267 visitors arrived in Seychelles in week 23 in 2024 compared to 5,001 last year, says the ministry.
